The Dakshinkali road

One of Nepal’s moodiest tantric sacrificial shrines, dakshin or “southern” Kali, lies at the end of the Kathmandu Valley’s longest and most varied road. As it snakes its way along a fold in the valley rim towards the shrine, the Dakshinkali road passes a fine succession of Buddhist and Hindu holy places, offering an intense, half-day snapshot of Nepal’s religious culture. The road begins at the busy Balkhu junction of the Ring Road, at the southwest corner of Kathmandu, just short of Kirtipur (which would make a fine side-trip). From Balkhu, it’s possible to take a 4WD taxi south through the hills, descending to the Terai at Hetauda.

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Sacrificial chickens and tantric goats

If orthodox Indian Hindus are very much of the “pure veg”, non-violent persuasion, their tantrically inclined Nepali cousins have a more bloodthirsty bent. At least, the thirst is on the part of Kali, Nepal’s fearsome – yet strangely popular – mother goddess who demands blood sacrifice in return for her favours.

Nepalis are curiously gentle in their worship: they lead their offerings to the slaughter tenderly, often whispering prayers in the animal’s ear and sprinkling its head with water to encourage it to shrug in assent; they believe that the death of this “unfortunate brother” will give it the chance to be reborn as a higher life form. Chickens, goats or, most expensively, buffaloes can be sacrificed, but only uncastrated males, preferably dark in colour, are offered.

At Dakshinkali, men of a special caste slit the animals’ throats and let the blood spray over the idols. Brahman priests oversee the butchering and instruct worshippers in all the complex rituals that follow. However, you don’t need to speak Nepali to get the gist of the explanations.

Tearing through to the Terai

A number of roads now pick their way through the hills south of Kathmandu. The so-called Kanti Highway (though it’s no such thing) heads south from Patan down the Bagmati Valley via Tika Bhairab to Thingana, where it turns west for Hetauda (though it will one day carry on due south to Nijgadh, making a new “fast track” route to the Terai).

The more useful routes are the two that break off the Dakshinkali Road – though both are still only paved in parts, and can become temporarily impassable during the monsoon. For now, they’re traversed by large, roof-racked “Tata Sumo” jeeps, which wait at the Balkhu junction, on the Ring Road where it crosses the Bagmati River, ready to depart as soon as they’re full of passengers. The 65km Dakshinkali route, known as the Madan Bhandari Highway, is more reliable and paved for longer sections (buses usually make it to Sisneri, 1hr from Dakshinkali). The higher, slightly shorter Pharping route can be quicker, and has the advantage of crossing the picturesque Kulekhani Reservoir dam. Both roads meet just below the Kulekhani Reservoir then descend via the picturesque bazaar town of Bhimphedi to join the Tribhuwan Rajpath at Bhainse, 11km north of Hetauda, in the Terai. By either route, the journey costs around Rs350 per head and takes three to four hours, and the traffic is light enough to make mountain biking an attractive option.

Champadevi hikes

The southwestern rim of the Kathmandu Valley rears up in a prominent fishtail of twin peaks, the highest visible parts of the Chandragiri range. The eastern summit is known as Champadevi, after the resident goddess.

The Haatiban ascent route

Perhaps the simplest ascent route follows the rough dirt road that skirts the Dollu valley (the one immediately north of Pharping) up to the Haatiban Height Resort. From the resort, a well-trodden track leads northwest up (and sometimes down) through pine forest, and then along the grassy ridgetop to the stupa-marked summit (2249m). A return trip from the resort should take around 3hr. If you walk up from the Dakshinkali road it might take anything from 4–6hr, so bring food and water.

Alternative ascent routes

A good alternative ascent route begins just after the Dakshinkali road makes an abrupt bend beyond Taudaha, climbing westwards along dirt roads through fields towards the edge of forest; at the trees, the trail turns southwards, and the last part of the route climbs steeply up through the forest to gain the ridge above Haatiban Resort, at about 2000m.

Another route approaches from the south, following a dirt road up the northern side of the Pharping valley before turning off up the small Sundol valley; you can follow any of a number of trails up from here – all lead directly north to the summit of Champadevi. To avoid the road section of this Pharping route, however, you could also ascend the forested ridge that divides Dollu from Pharping; the trail begins at the monastery immediately west of the Bajra Yogini temple – it’s a bit tricky at the start as you have to find your way through a profusion of prayer flags and paths.

Beyond Champadevi

From the summit of Champadevi, you can continue down and up to the unnamed western peak of the fishtail – which is actually slightly higher, at 2286m. You can then continue west along the ridge for an hour (or somewhat less), following a well-made path down to a saddle and then up to a higher peak (2509m). From here, another ridge tracks south for another hour or so up to the highest peak of the range, Bhasmesur (2622m) – said to be the ashy remains of a demon tricked by Vishnu into incinerating himself. West of the Bhasmesur spur, a path turns north off the ridge (though the actual ridge-line is confused around here – and the illegal charcoal-burning pits don’t help), descending a steep and seemingly endless stone staircase down to the village of Machegaon (90min descent) from where various trails and roads lead back to Kirtipur.

If you had the requisite time, weather, guide (or good map and route-asking skills) and fitness, you could also trek west along the ridgetop from the Bhasmesur spur to a col at Deurali, and then on west to another pass at Chitlang Bhanjyang, from where a dirt road descends to Thankot, on the busy Prithvi Highway (the Pokhara road); it would be a very long day.